With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Valero and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.

Valero facts

Headquarters (founded)

San Antonio, Texas (1955)

Market Cap

$25.2 billion

Industry

Oil and gas refining and marketing

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$138.3 billion

Management

Chairman/CEO William Klesse

President/COO Joseph Gorder

Return on Equity (average, past 3 years)

10.5%

Cash/Debt

$1.7 billion / $7.1 billion

Dividend Yield

1.8%

Competitors

BP

Chevron

ExxonMobil

Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.

On CAPS, 96% of the 4,523 members who have rated Valero believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward.

Just last week, one of those Fools, All-Star BudandMolly, succinctly summed up the Valero bull case for our community:

Refiners have a monopoly on gas production. Due to regulation there is a virtual block to any new refineries or even expansion of existing ones leaving them without competition. Limited production of gasoline keeps prices high and as oil prices come down due to domestic production increases the spread of input costs to output prices increases.

Of course, there are many different ways to play the energy sector, and The Motley Fool's analysts have uncovered an under-the-radar company that's dominating its industry. This company is a leading provider of equipment and components used in drilling and production operations, and poised to profit in a big way from it. To get the name and detailed analysis of this company that will prosper for years to come, check out the special free report: "The Only Energy Stock You'll Ever Need." Don't miss out on this limited-time offer and your opportunity to discover this under-the-radar company before the market does. Click here to access your report -- it's totally free.

Want to see how well (or not so well) the stocks in this series are performing? Follow the TrackPoisedTo CAPS account.